Car coupler



w. J. METZGER Aug. 29, 1939.

CAR COUPLER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March -11, 1956 INVENTOR 1% M R J Mm .m A m W Aug. 29, 1939. w. J. METZGER CAR COUPLER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 11, 1936 v INVENTGR r e e m M m Jw mA .m m Y Patented Aug. 29, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CAR COUPLER Application March 11, 1936, Serial No. 68,154

13 Claims.

This invention relates to car couplers and particularly to car couplers of the type shown in the patent to Arthur J. Bazeley No. 1,945,362, dated. January 30, 1934. In said patent there is disclosed a coupler comprising a coupler head, a knuckle, a lock for said knuckle, and a lifter for said lock, operated from the bottom of the coupler. When the lock is in its lower or normal locking position, a foot on said lock underlies a ledge on the coupler head and is adapted to engage the under surface of the ledge to prevent creeping of the lock. Upon upward movement of the lifter, a surface thereon engages a projection on the lock and positively forces the foot from 1,53, beneath the ledge so as to permit the lock to be raised completely into position for unlocking the knuckle. It has been found advisable to preclude any possibility of the foot of the look from moving from beneath the ledge except at such times that it is operated by the lifter. Such movement might be caused by the rotating action of the tail of the knuckle on the locking surface of the lock due to the knuckle being successively tipped up and down in operation by the knuckle of the opposing car. Furthermore, it has been found that in service the draft and puffing loads together with the rocking and slipping of one knuckle on the other, cause coupler locks to creep unless some additional means is provided to positively hold the lock in its an'ti-creep-position.

My invention comprises the provision of positive means simple in construction for preventing the foot of the lock from moving from beneath the ledge except when acted on by the lifter.

This may take the form of a slot in the lifter, the walls of which drop over a projection on the tail of the lock, preventing relative movement between the lock and lifter when the lifter and lock are in locked position. The slot is disengaged m from the projection when the lifter is actuated in the usual manner to unlock the knuckle. Other features of the invention will be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional View of coupler mechanism embodying my invention with part of the lock broken away,

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1, but with the lock and liftermoved to a position in which the foot of the look just clears the anti-creep shoulder on the coupler,

Figure 3 is a horizontal section taken online 33 of Figure 1, but with the knuckle shown in plan and in closed position,

Figure 4 is a perspective viewof the lock, and

Figure 5 is a perspective view of the lifter.

Referring to the drawings, A indicates the coupler head; B the knuckle; C the lock and D the lifter. These parts correspond to the similarly designated parts in the patent previously referred 5 to. The knuckle B is pivoted to the coupler head by the pin 1 in the usual manner. The lock C cooperates with the knuckle B in the same manner as in the aforesaid patent, said lock in one position serving to lock the knuckle closed, and in another position permitting the knuckle to be swung to the knuckle thrown position through the medium of suitable spring means. The lock comprises a head 2, 2. depending leg 3 and a forwardly projecting foot 4. When the lock is in its locked position, as shown in Figure 1, the foot 4 extends beneath a ledge 5 on the head of the coupler and prevents movement of the lock upwardly to a position in which the knuckle would be permitted to open. The lock is also provided with an integral pin 6 for cooperation with the ends of a slot I of the lifter. Projecting laterally from one side of the lock is a lug 8 which is adapted to enter a slot 9 in the lifter. The slot 9 is extended downwardly and rearwardly to the rear surface of the lifter as at 10 and at such point is formed by sloping surfaces II and 12. It will be apparent from Figs. 1 and 3 that the lock can only move rearwardly, when in locked position, until the rear surface I3 of the lifter engages the surface M at the rear of the lock opening in the coupler head. Further movement of the lock rearwardly is prevented by the engagement of lug 8 with the rear surface -I 5 of slot 9 in the lifter.

In moving the lock to unlocked position, the lifter is moved upwardly by the usual uncoupling rod passing through opening 56. The lifter will move upwardly relative to the lock until the surface l2 engages the under surfac ll of the lug 8 on the lock. In this position the lug 8 is entirely free of slot 9. Further movement of the lifter upwardly rotates the lock C by the action of surfaces l2 and H, which in effect causes the surface l! to slide down the surface l2. This rotation of the lock withdraws the foot 4 from beneath the ledge 5, as shown in Figure 2. In this position the rear surface 18 of the leg 3 of the lock has engaged the surface It on the coupler head so that further movement of the lifter upwardly will carry the lock with it in the same di-- rection by means of the engagement of the lifter with trunnion 6 of the lock.

Upon closing the knuckle, the lock and lifter move downwardly toward locked position. During'this movement the sloping surface ll-on the lifter is in engagement with the projection 8 on the lock. When the lock reaches a position, such that the foot 4 is at a lower level than the ledge 5 the engagement between surface I I and projection 8 causes the leg of the lock to be rotated forwardly so that the foot 4 is beneath the anticreep ledge. This rotation will continue until the projection 8 is opposite the slot 9 in the lifter at which time the lifter will drop over the projection. Return of the parts to locked position is facilitated by the weight of the lock lifter an v for the lock, said lock being adapted to be moved rearwardly so as to withdraw said bottom poruncoupling rod.

While I have shown and described my invention as applied to a particular form of coupler, it is of course obvious that it may be used with other types such as the standard E coupler and others in which the knuckle is thrown by means other than a spring.

The terms and expressions which I have employed are used as terms of description and not of limitation, and I have no intention, in the use of such terms and expressions, of excluding any equivalents of the features shown and described or portions thereof, but recognize that various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention claimed.

What I claim is:

1. In a car coupler, a head including a ledge, a knuckle, a lock element for said knuckle, said lock element having a portion projecting from the bottom thereof and normally extending beneath said ledge to form an anti-creep for the lock element, said lock element being adapted to be moved rearwardly so as to withdraw said projecting portion from. beneath said ledge, a lifter element for said lock element and means preventing rearward movement of said lock element when the latteris in looking position, said means comprising a projection on one of said elements and a recess in the other of said elements receiving said projection.

2. In a car coupler, a head including a ledge adjacent the bottom thereof, a knuckle and a lock element therefor, a lifter element for said lock element, said lock element comprising a leg por- 'tion and a portion at the bottom of said leg normally extending beneath said ledge, and

means normally preventing movement of said lock element from beneath said ledge, said means comprising a projection on one of said elements and a surface on the other of said elements for said ledge.

3. In a car coupler, a knuckle and a lock element therefor, a bottom operated lifter element for said lock, anti-creep means for said lock element comprising a portion of the bottom of said lock element normally underlying a ledge on said coupler, said lock element being adapted to be moved rearwardly so as to withdraw said bottom portion from beneath said ledge, and means comprising a slot in one of said elements and a projection on the other of said elements extending into said slot limiting movement of said lock, element from beneath said ledge.

4. In a car coupler, a knuckle and a. lock therefor having a downwardly extending leg, an

opening in the bottom of said coupler receiving said leg, a ledge adjacent said opening, said leg having a projection at the'bottom thereof extending beneath said ledge when in locked position to limit upward movement of said lock; and;

a member connected to said leg and movable relative thereto, said connection between said member and leg being constructed and arranged so that in one position said member maintains said projection beneath said ledge and when in another position assists in the withdrawal of said projection from beneath said ledge.

5. In a car coupler, a head including a ledge, a knuckle, a lock for said knuckle, said lock having a portion at the bottom thereof normally extending beneath said ledge to form an anti-creep tion from beneath said ledge, a lifter for said lock and means preventing rearward movement of said lock, said means comprising a projection on said lock and a recess in said lifter receiving said projection.

6. In a car coupler, a head including a ledge, a knuckle and a lock therefor, a lifter for said lock, said lock having a portion thereof normally extending beneath said ledge and means normally preventing movement of said lock from beneath said ledge, said means comprising a slot in said lifter and a projection on said lock entering said slot, and means adjacent said slot cooperating with said projection for effecting withdrawal of the look from beneath said ledge when said lifter is moved upwardly.

7. In a car coupler, a knuckle and a look therefor, a bottom operated lifter for said lock, anticreep means for said lock comprising aportion at the bottom thereof normally underlying a ledge on said coupler, said lock being adapted to be moved rearwardly so as to withdraw said bottom portion from beneath said ledge, and means comprising a slot in said lifter and a projection on said lock extending into said slot preventing movement of the bottom of said look from beneath said ledge.

8. In a car coupler, a knuckle and a lock element therefor, a bottom operaed lifter element for said lock, anti-creep means for said lock element comprising a portion of the bottom of said lock element normally underlying a ledge on said coupler, said lock being adapted to be moved rearwardly so as to withdraw said bottom portion from beneath said ledge, one of said elements having a projection, and a slot in the other of said elements receiving said projection and cooperating therewith to prevent movement of said look from beneath said ledge and means adjacent said slot cooperating with said projection to assist in returning said portion of said lock element beneath said ledge upon return of the parts from unlocked to locked positions.

9. In a car coupler, a knuckle, a lock element for said knuckle, a lifter element for said lock element, said elements being constructed and arranged to have relative rearward movement therebetween during unlocking of the coupler engageable means on said elements for causing said lock to be moved to unlocking position after predetermined movement of said lifter relative to said lock, and. means below said engageable means limiting relative rearward movement between said lock element and lifter element when said lock is in locked position, said second named means comprising a slot in one of said elements and a projection on the other of said elements entering said slot.

10. In a car coupler, a knuckle, a lock for said knuckle having a portion at the bottom thereof underlying a part of said coupler to limit upward movement of said look when in locked position,

a lifter for said lock, said lock being constructed and arranged to tip rearwardly when actuated by said lifter to move said portion from beneath said coupler part, and means limiting relative rearward movement between said lock and lifter when in locked position, said means comprising a slot in said lifter and a projection on said lock entering said slot.

11. In a car coupler, a knuckle, a lock for said knuckle having a portion at the bottom thereof underlying a part of said coupler to limit upward movement of said look when in locked position, a. lifter for said lock, said lock being constructed and arranged to tip rearwardly when actuated by said lifter to move said portion from beneath said coupler part, and means limiting relative rearward movement between said lock and lifter when in locked position, said means comprising a vertically arranged slot in said lifter and a projection on said lock entering said slot.

12. In a car coupler, a knuckle and a lock element therefor, a lifter element having means thereonadapted to engage said lock element to move the latter to unlocked position, said lockelement and lifter element being so constructed and arranged as to enable relative rearward movement therebetween during unlocking of the coupler, and means separate from the first-mentioned means for limiting relative rearward movement between said lock element and lifter element when in locked position, said limiting means comprising a vertically arranged slot in one of said elements and a projection on the other of said elements entering said slot.

13. In a car coupler, a lock element, a link element having a slidable connection with said lock element, a projection on said coupler head engageable by one of said elements .to limit creeping of said lock, said slidable connection being adapted to normally prevent movement of said one of said elements from engageable relation with said projection when said lock is in locked position, and means comprising said slidable connection for positively withdrawing said one of said elements from beneath said projection even though said projection is engaged by said element.

WILLIAM J. METZGER. 

